Alcohol

There are no warnings against the intake of alcoholic beverages while taking these medicines, however, alcohol and both decongestants have the potential to cause a rise in blood pressure.

Is It Safe During Pregnancy or Breastfeeding?

Oxymetazoline

It’s not clear whether it is safe to take the medicine if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, consulting your doctor is important to ensure that it is safe for both you and your developing fetus to use this decongestant.

Phenylephrine

Since there have been some reports of related birth defects, it’s best to avoid this medicine if you are pregnant, particularly in the first 13 weeks of pregnancy.

After, occasional use of the drug is probably safe. For breastfeeding women, this decongestant does not reduce milk supply.

Bottom Line – Oxymetazoline vs Phenylephrine

It is usually found as a nasal spray which is used to relieve nasal discomfort that is caused by allergies, colds, and hay fever.

Phenylephrine is a drug that is used as an injection for increasing blood pressure under certain specific conditions. But, it is commonly used as a nasal decongestant medicine that relieves nasal blockage caused by the common cold, allergy, sinusitis, or hay fever.

Therefore, both medications are part of the same family of drugs and have a similar mechanism of action. Both have similar effectiveness in reducing nasal congestion.

However, remember that the use of these decongestant nasal sprays for more than several days may result in rebound nasal congestion.

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